The shiplift, is the largest and most sophisticated in the world, according to Three Gorges Corp, a state-owned company responsible for the construction of the project, state-run Xinhua news reported.
Three Gorges Dam in central China's Hubei province is the world's biggest water project.
The beginning of its trial operation marks the completion of the Three Gorges project, 22 years after construction on the mammoth project began, Zhang Shuguang, assistant general manager of the corporation said.
The vertical-hoisting elevator is designed to help small and medium-sized ships, with a maximum displacement of about 3,000 tonnes, to traverse the dam.
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The shiplift is equipped with a ship-chamber, which has a pool of water 120-meters long, 18-meters wide and 3.5-meters deep. The chamber, its mechanical systems and the water weigh 15,500 tonnes altogether.
The shiplift has been installed to complement the five-tier ship lock next to it, which is also the world's largest and has allowed ships to pass through since 2003.
The ship lock is running at full capacity, with its cargo throughput standing at 119.6 million tonnes in 2015, compared with 34.31 million tonnes in 2004.
It used to take ships about three to four hours to pass the dam via the ship lock. The shiplift will cut this time to about 40 minutes to one hour, the report said.
Construction of the shiplift began in 1994. Due to technical difficulties, the project was put on hold in 1995. Construction resumed in 2008.
The Three Gorges project is a multi-functional water control system. Its functions include flood control, transportation and power generation, the report said.
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